This currently described device relates to an improvement in batting-practice devices, and more particularly to collapsible and truly portable batting-practice device suitable for batting practice and which is easily collapsible and easily returned to an operational state.
Baseball is an extremely popular sport from the backyard player to the sandlot to schools to professional sports. Many elements are associated with this popular game. Among one of the most important is batting as without good batting skills no runs can be scored. Coaching and practice are key elements to batting in play. A common method of improving a player's swing is to bat against live pitchers or against a pitching machine. This of course requires more than one ball player, in the case of live pitching, or many players merely standing around waiting for their turn to bat in the case of pitching machines. Time and manpower are wasted and pitching machines are costly in purchase and in maintenance. Additionally, most players also like to take practice swings against a baseball during a game while waiting for their turn to bat.
Several batting type devices have been designed for the purpose of permitting a single player to practice swinging at a ball with a bat typically where a single rope or cord was merely tethered to a ball. After striking the ball using this device, the ball would continue to circle around and around until it loses its speed or the cord becomes wrapped around its support structure. In such instances, the player has to reset the ball by unwinding it or waiting for the ball to stop circling. Time is wasted in the process.
A patent to Ratajac (U.S. Pat. No. 5,040,791) teaches a collapsible portable batting cage having an upper frame assembly, a lower frame assembly, a rear frame assembly on top and bottom, and one side frame assembly on each side of the upper and lower frame assemblies. A length of shock cord (elastic bungee type cord) is threaded through a vertical bore hole in a ball. The shock cord attaches to the top front, back to the top rear, and is insertably adjustable into one of a plurality of holes, of pre-determined spacing, on one side of the top rear assembly. The other end of the shock cord attaches to the bottom front and back to the rear frame on the bottom.
The ball is suspended approximately mid-height a the front by a non-elastic line (referred to as a safety line) attached to the ball with its two ends attached at approximately mid-height at the rear on the side frames. The height of the static position of the ball is adjustable by moving the shock cord at the rear frame assembly to different locations. This device is portable due to the nature of its light weight components and it is also collapsible which allows it to be stored or carried in a compact manner. Collapsing this device, however, requires that all fasteners must be removed from the frame components and that the frame components be removed from each other and, when its use is required, that they all be re-assembled. An extremely time-consuming process. In addition, the safety line has a tendency to interfere with a swing which is angled slightly up or down from a perfect horizontal swing.
A patent to McKenna (U.S. Pat. No. 6,186,540) describes a portable apparatus for the practice of a person's batting swings that includes a frame, a net, and a ball attached to non-elastic cords. Each lower terminal end of the frame has a ball-engaging eye bolt. A pair of net-engaging uprights of the frame have a pair of tubes that are formed as one-piece therewith for ease of manufacture by eliminating a need for welding. Button fasteners replaceably maintain the members of the frame together for ease of fabrication and collapsing by eliminating a need for nuts and bolts. A second upper member of the frame has a plurality of ball-engaging blind bores for adjusting the height of the ball.
A lowermost terminal edge of the net drapes so as to prevent any balls from rolling thereunder while providing a dampening effect for the ball when hit against the net. There is no lower cross member which eliminates any rebound of a ball that hits low on the net. One section of the non-elastic cords extend from the ball first upward to the top front then to the side attaching any one of the pre-determined blind bores. Two sections of the non-elastic cords emanate from the bottom of the ball and attach to either bottom rear side of the frame. This device eliminates the problems associated with the safety lines of Ratajac; but, the non-elasticity of the cords limits its effect of travel and renders it slower to rebound and reset.
As with the Ratajac device, this device, though it may be “collapsible” it too must be taken apart for travel and re-assembled when need. Also a time-consuming process. Typically, after each device is first assembled, users generally leave them assembled and either leave them where there are or find a means to transport them, in their assembled state, to the desired location. Either prospect renders each such device less desirable. Moreover, if left assembled, each takes up quite a bit of storage space.
The currently described device solves all the problems associated with the above devices and other prior art devices. Because the frame components are hingedly connected, the entire device is truly collapsible. From its assembled state, the device easily and quickly “folds” into a “dis-assembled” state for storage or transportation and easily and quickly “unfolds” into an assembled stated when it is needed. Height adjustment for the ball is not based on a pre-determined set of height increments but can be adjusted to accommodate even the slightest of increments to the millimeter.
Safety/return lines are structured as not to interfere with a batter's swing and a removably attachable rear elastic cord removably attachable to the ball facilitates resetting of the ball after it has been struck and is a greater practice aid for an experience player. Its removability permits a less experienced player, who may have a tendency to under swing the ball and hit the cord below the ball, to also use the same device by merely removing this cord from the bottom of the ball. Detailed adjustments to all the cord components permits a skilled user to make minute adjustments to tautness to thereby establish a sense of dynamic reality in the batting/swinging practice.
Accordingly, several objects and advantages of the currently described device are to:
a. provide an effective batting-practice device suitable for beginners, intermediate player, and for more experienced players all in one such device.
b. facilitate storage of by creating a collapsible batting-practice which easily unfolds from a collapsed state into an operational state and folds easily into a collapsed state.
c. facilitate transportation of a batting-practice device by establishing collapsibility without necessity of disassembly of frame parts from one another.
d. establish an ability to easily adjust ball height by as low as one millimeter or less, up or down, as suited to a particular user's needs, desires, or skill.
The foregoing has outlined some of the more pertinent objects of the currently described device. These objects should be construed to be merely illustrative of some of the more prominent features and applications of the currently described device. Many other beneficial results can be attained by applying the disclosed currently described device in a different manner or by modifying the currently described device within the scope of the disclosure. Accordingly, other objects and a fuller understanding of the currently described device may be had by referring to the summary of the currently described device and the detailed description of the preferred embodiment in addition to the scope of the currently described device defined by the claims taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.